March – Book of the Month

My top pick for March 2017.

The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel

Publication date: 9th March 2017

In her first adult novel author Amy Engel explores the themes of families, riches and how everything is not always as it seems.

“Roanoke girls never last long around here. In the end, we either run or we die.”

The thriller follows Lane Roanoke, one of the latest generation of Roanoke girls, after her mother’s suicide when she is 15 years old. Forced to live on her grandparent’s estate with her cousin Allegra, she quickly embraces live as a rich Roanoke girl.

But not for long… “Roanoke girls never last long around here. In the end, we either run or we die” says the tag line of the novel. And Lane runs fast and far away once she discovers the truth about her family.

11 year later, Allegra goes missing. Lane returns to help search and ease her guilt for having left her alone. She returns to face a boyfriend whose heart she broke when she left and the family secret that made her flee.

The novel switches effortlessly between Lane’s first summer on her Grandparent’s estate, to her return 11 years after. Is she strong enough to escape the Roanoke secret a second time?

I love this quote from Cosmo magazine which says: “With more twists than a bag of pretzels, this compelling family saga may make you question what you think you know about your own relatives.” Which I think sums exactly how the novel feels to reads.

“With more twists than a bag of pretzels”

Covering some very dark subjects, it is clear that Engel was right to move away from teen novels and turn this story into her debut adult novel. Covering generations of a family in turmoil and revealing tiny snippets of the family secret along the way, this is a novel that grips you until the very end.

I got my idea for my book of the month from Whsmiths’s Fiction book of the Month. You can view what they have to say about ‘The Roanoke Girls’ and their other top picks for this month by clicking here.

For more brilliant books out this month click here to find out more about Waterstones top picks for March.

Have you read a great book this month? Can’t wait for a certain novel to be released? Let me know in the comments!